I agree, Many unecessary and unrelated bills are added to ruin many good bills- ONE ISSUE at a time! I also think a system should be in place where every citizen can vote their choices to the representitive (Senator,Congressman, etc.) so the politicians actually know how the PEOPLE they represent feel about the issues at hand. If everyones votes were counted by their social security # and zip code then the politicians would know how their constituents want them to vote. Alot of politicians vote what THEY feel is the right choice (or with which side sent the biggest check) and IGNORE what the PEOPLE think. We the people have been alienated from the process of making laws that we are expected to obey! This is wrong !!

Washington State has a simple subject rule that requires any piece of legislation be limited to a singular purpose.  I think by simplifying bills, legislators would have to be more accountable.  It would create a impediment to some of the pet projects that get hidden with in non-related legislation. 

Right "unrelated" bills.  That's the word I was looking for. 

 

I could noe agree more. It seems to me that any bill that is presented for a vote by our Congressmen should stand alone in front of the House or Senate with no "Pork Barrel"
ammendments attached.With a bill that has "Pork Barrel' amendments attached should be vetoed by the President. 

 All great ideas and make it all available on the net so we can see what is voted for and by whom.

 

Perhaps a yearly "Pork Barrel" bill :) having all the special project togeather with the authors of each entry and placed on the "web" for the people's review before going to the President?
From what I understand "Pork Barrel" only consists of less than 1% of the actual budget spent.

Right.  But it's not just limited to Pork Barrel.  For instance the people upset on here that online gambling was made illegal.  For example The Safe Port Act, a bill aimed at enhancing security at U.S. ports, had the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) attached to it, that made online gambling.  Although I agree that online gambling should be illegal, what does that have to do with enhancing security at US Ports?   The bills should be voted on separately. 

Let me correct the mistakes in the last:

I agree.  Loaded bills are too often bloated, do very little well, make votes harder than they need, and ultimately waste money and time.  Good bills are like good programs, they're both just a list of instructions and they do one thing and do it well.  Perhaps lawmakers should be required to take a programming class so they can learn good practices and apply them to their work.

Absolutely!  Lumping unrelated issues together is completely ridiculous.  If an issue is worth bringing up, it should stand on its own merit.  Adding unrelated junk to it for the purpose of getting it to pass is a sneaky and underhanded thing to do.

This is a ridiculous practice that totally unrelated issues are combined and rushed thru when many voting members are not even aware of these absurd last minute additions.

The practice of adding amendments to that are unrelated or remotely and barely related to the original bill is a cost that this country should never have born and can no longer afford to finance.

This single act would bring accountability to legislators, reduce deal making, curb lobbyists' influence, and speed the legislative process by narrowing debates on "unrelated or remotely and barely related" topics.

I agree with all the above

we need line by line veto's to stop nonsense like this from happening.  you should never have to pass something you dont beleive in just because the main issue in the bill is something you strongly believe in. Obama please REPEAL UIGEA